Tuesday, 14 October 2025

 Trung LUU (Western Metropolitan) (18:47): (1989) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Emergency Services regarding the firefighters’ wage and entitlement negotiations. Bargaining and negotiation for firefighters’ wage and entitlements commenced over five years ago between the United Firefighters Union and Fire Rescue Victoria, and an agreement was reached on all matters other than wage and allowance in 2023. Since then all negotiations have collapsed, and it is now with the Fair Work Commission. So the action I seek is for the minister and the Premier to address the firefighters’ wage entitlement negotiation after protracted industrial dispute for five long years. The minister is on record claiming that this government respects the workforce and yet has failed to resolve this ongoing dispute or fix other issues, like providing adequate modern equipment for them to fight fires. We have seen what happens with outdated trucks in recent days. Over 40 per cent of the trucks on the road are dangerous, obsolete and out of date. I have raised this concern with the minister on several occasions over the years. This issue was again brought to my attention on my recent visit to one of the local fire stations, and by all accounts no improvement has been made in this space in this time. I understand that over the past three years bargaining has progressed and countless meetings had ensured goodwill until 2023. However, the point is that we are now at the end of 2025 and yet these firefighters still have not received any pay increase and their allowances have not increased. That is not good enough. The government needs to get on with finalising these EBA negotiations, pay the firefighters what they are worth and stop wasting taxpayers dollars on legal fees to firefighters. The firefighters need to be paid a fair day’s wage.